Six reasons why New Year’s resolutions fail

Did you make a New Year’s Resolution for 2014? 

Most of us do make resolutions; in fact around 45  per cent of Americans make a promise to themselves that they’ll improve some area of their life. 

There are quite a number of reasons why we can’t keep our resolutions and I have put them into a top six list.

• Make sure your dream is realistic:

Many of us make ridiculously unrealistic goals — a bit like stating that you are going to run the New York Marathon when you can’t manage a 5k charity walk. We are setting ourselves up for failure. 

A 5k run would be a lot more realistic and save you from self persecution.

• Make sure your dream is aligned with your values:

You have to realise your value set in life. If you truly value your health and yet smoke like a chimney then your values are clearly not aligned. 

It’s only once you are aligned with your values that everything else in life will fall into place.

• Sticking to your plan:

If you’re doing something because someone else has told you to do it or it’s what you think is expected of you then you’ll never stick to a plan. 

We need to keep to a resolution out of inspiration and joyfulness in order for it to last the distance.

• Don’t put too much pressure on yourself:

We often just give up on something as we place so much pressure on ourselves to succeed. 

We all thrive under a little pressure. It is needed in order to grow but too much pressure adds stress to the body, this along with all the other daily stressors and ends up in failure.

• Go to the gym because you love you:

We should go to the gym out of self-improvement because we love the body we are in and want to make it better. 

It’s like having a Ferrari. You’re going to take care of it and become familiarised with the local car wash. 

If you have an old car you’re not going to care if it gets scratched up. Be that Ferrari. Go to the gym because you love the body you have. It’s the least you can do.

• Working in, not just working out:

This has to be one of the most misunderstood concepts out there. We don’t get stronger by working out. This means gym sessions, running, CrossFit and anything else you regard as working ‘out’. We only get stronger by working ‘in’. This type of exercise includes Tai Chi, Yoga, meditation, Qi Gong and anything that cultivates energy in the body. Working ‘out’ is just the stressor that triggers the body to get stronger. It’s an important concept and how we capitalise on our workouts.

Colin now blogs at CoconutFitness.com